From R & D to Strategy and Management – Technology is the Key

If you’re in need of advice on information technology strategy and management, Adrian
Bowles ’77, MS ’78, vice president of consulting at Datamonitor and founder of SIG411,
is your man.

With an extensive background in IT, Adrian Bowles’ resume includes stints in executive
positions in R & D management for IT firms and consulting groups, teaching at NYU,
Drexel and Binghamton universities and earning a PhD from Northwestern University.
But what has he done lately? Founded a firm to provide resources to support enterprise
and individual sustainability efforts while working for Datamonitor and teaching at
Boston College. A recent addition to the Dean's Advisory Board at Binghamton University’s
Thomas J. Watson School of Engineering and Applied Science, Bowles began his career
in research and application development roles at IBM and GTE Laboratories and has
moved on from there to become a thought-leader in IT strategy and management.

How does he do it all? “I carry two business cards and have two computers on my desk
– one windows, one mac, plus a Blackberry and an Iphone,” he says. “I try to only
carry the Iphone on weekends and try to segment calls out with different ring tones.
I use technology to help me use technology.”

Bowles says that nominally, he has two real jobs, plus his community service for the
Watson School and Boston College. “One job is working solo with a few associates,
and the other is for a very large, international research firm with resources at my
disposal and me on notice globally all the time.

“The common thread for all of what I’ve done the past 20 years is that I’m fascinated
by the potential of technology to make things better,” he says. “The environment,
the economy… Technology itself is neutral but has the capacity to improve almost everything
it touches.” “If I’ve matured professionally, it’s that over the last several years
I’ve migrated my focus to the business use of technology. Instead of looking at technology
as a computer scientist, I’m looking at the business purpose it’s going to achieve
and I now teach in the business world,” Bowles says. “At heart, I’m still someone
who loves to tinker with technology.” But he works hard at his craft as well and provides
this advice to others: “In this economy, you have to be more responsive than the next
person. On the train this morning, I wrote 14 e-mails,” he says. “It’s quite common
that I’ll be online with friends and colleagues at odd hours throughout the night.”

Bowles speaks of helpful faculty who enabled him to take graduate-level courses before
completing his bachelor’s degree, allowing him to earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees
in 4 ½ years. “It was the kind of place where you could get kind of creative and create
your own major and that really fit my personality,” Bowles says. “I have felt through
the last 20 years that I’m still part of that community. It’s a great place for our
kids to get a start.” A recent visit to campus underscored Bowles’ connections to
Binghamton. “When I had a look around, a couple of things struck me,” he says. “The
school has really done an outstanding job of maturing. It may be a more conventional
school now, but … when I got to see the caliber of the faculty I was thrilled. If
even a small percentage of the graduates have the depth of relationships that I had
there, then the future will be very bright for Binghamton.”